Festival de Cannes 72 Countdown: The Piano, 1993

We excitedly countdown to the 72nd Festival de Cannes with a different prize winning film each day.

The Piano, 1993

Palme d’Or – Jane Campion

Prix d’interprétation féminine – Holly Hunter

Jane Campion was the first woman to win the Palme d’Or. And as of 2019 she remains the only female filmmaker to do so. Considering the fact that the Cannes Film Festival is in its 72nd year, to know that Campion remains the sole female winner of the prestigious award is a sad reflection of the struggles that female filmmakers have faced, and continue to face.

Even in the last week, when the line-up for the films in competition was announced, there were only four films by female filmmakers. Proving that things really haven’t improved since 1993 when Campion walked away with the award.

26 years on and The Piano remains one of the greatest achievements by a female filmmaker, beautifully encapsulating the female gaze and the female voice. Despite the film being set in the 19th Century, much of what the main character Ada McGrath (Holly Hunter) has to endure and is subjected to, are still issues that many women face.

Ada is a mute, and hasn’t spoken a single word to anyone since she was six years old. Her only true form of communication and express is via her piano. We hear her inner thoughts via voice-over narration, and she informs us that “The strange thing is, I don’t think myself silent. That is because of my piano.”

For the majority of her life, Ada’s path has been decided by men. Now she has been sold by her father into marriage to a New Zealand frontiersman named Alisdair Stewart (Sam Neill), bringing her young daughter Flora (Anna Paquin) with her. Ada and Flora arrive and their belongings, including a hand crafted piano, are deposited on a New Zealand beach by a ship’s crew. They wait, but no-one comes to greet them, which means the mother and the daughter must spend the night together on the beach.

“There’s not really much that can be said about The Piano that hasn’t been said before. It truly is a glowing achievement of filmmaking.”

The following day, Alisdair finally arrives with a Māori crew and his friend, Baines (Harvey Keitel), a retired sailor who has adopted many of the Maori customs. The relationship between Ada and Alisdair gets off to a very rocky start when he insists on leaving her piano on the beach. Ada can’t stand to be apart from her piano and later on requests that Baines takes her to the beach so she can play. Baines watches on transfixed as Flora dances and does cartwheels in the sand.It’s a beautiful scene where we become lost in the music just as Ada is.

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Baines soon suggests that Alisdair trade the instrument to him for some land. Alisdair agrees to this deal and also agrees to Baines’ request to receive lessons from Ada. Yet again, Ada’s life is being decided without her consent. Naturally, she is enraged when she learns that Alisdair has traded away her precious piano without consulting her.

Still, she attends these lessons. During one visit, Baines proposes that Ada can earn her piano back at a rate of one piano key per “lesson”, provided that he can observe her and do “things he likes” while she plays. The question is whether Ada is willing to do whatever it takes to get back her piano?

There’s not really much that can be said about The Piano that hasn’t been said before. It truly is a glowing achievement of filmmaking. Campion understands the inner workings of female desire, passion and the sense of longing. Often we see desire that the form of male sexualness and lust. Women are seen as mere objects of desire, trophies to be won.

“Considering the fact that the Cannes film festival is in its 72nd year, to know that Campion remains the sole female winner of the prestigious award is a sad reflection of the struggles that female filmmakers have faced and continue to face.”

We do see male sexual desire depicted in The Piano, but the film isn’t seen through the lens of a male nor is the narrative told from the male perspective. Very rarely do women have the narrative told from through eyes, and it is even rarer that we see female characters demonstrate any sexual desire.

In perhaps film’s most erotic scene, sexual desire is depicted in the most simple of gestures, when Baines gently rubs his finger on Ada’s leg through a small hole in her stockings. This small moment shows the power of human touch and sensuality. Most importantly this scene helps to benefit the plot further, and establish the relationship between the two characters.

Holly Hunter’s performance is magnificent, her eyes full of expression and speaking volumes despite her never really uttering a single sound. We feel her pain, and her anger as her character is forced to humiliate herself. Hunter wasn’t Campion’s first choice as Ada.

In fact it was Sigourney Weaver, but she turned down the role because she was taking a break from film at the time. Jennifer Jason Leigh and Isabelle Huppert were also considered. Seeing Hunter’s exceptional performance, it is hard to imagine anyone else in this role. Her hard work paid off and she won Best Actress at the 66th Academy Awards.

The Piano remains a masterpiece, thanks to Campion’s remarkable direction. It is also worth mentioning Michael Nyman’s sweeping score, and Stuart Dryburgh’s gorgeous cinematography capturing the beauty and the awe of the New Zealand landscape. Each actor gives the best performance possible, and of course Anna Paquin would go on to win Best Supporting Actress at the Oscars. Campion would be nominated for Best Director, but would lose to Steven Spielberg for Schindler’s List.

Slowly progress is being made at Cannes, last year saw just three films directed by female filmmakers in competition. But hopefully it won’t be another 26 years until we see another female director winning the Palme d’Or.